Stabilizer for airships



244. AERONAUTICS Aug; 25, I925. 1,550,798

0. GEISLER v v STABILIZER FOR AIRSHIPS Filed March 2,1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS 244. AERONAUTICS Aug. 25, 1925. v

O. GEISLER IABILIZBR FOR AIRSHIPS Filed larch 1925 2 Shah-Sheet 2 0. GEISLEB M 75;

ATTORNEYS 44. AERONAUTICS Patented Aug. 25, 1925.

UNITED STATES OTTO GEISLER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

STABILIZER FOR AIRSHIIS.

Application filed March 2, 1925. Serial No. 12,720.

To all whom, it may con-corn:

Be it known that I, OTTO GEISLER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Stabilizers for Airships, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in stabilizers for airships, particularly of the lighter than air type, and it consists in the combinations, constructions, and arrangements herein described and claimed.

An object of my invention is to provide a stabilizer of the character described by means of which ballast is automatically moved from one end of the ship toward the other end so as to maintain the ship normally upon an even keel.

A further object of my invention is to provide a stabilizer of the character described which is under manual control from the pilot house of the ship and whereby the ballast may be adjusted should the gravity actuated operating means fail as in emergency.

A further object of my invention is to provide a stabilizer of the character described that is simple in construction and does not occupy much space in the keel of the ship, and which is thoroughly practical for the purpose intended.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification, and the novel features of the invention will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming part of this application, in which Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of a lighter than air ship equipped with my improved stabilizer, and

Figure 2 is a view partially in section showing the essential elements of the invention.

In, carrying out my invention I make use of a lighter than air ship having a gas containing body member 1 and a keel portion 2. A pilot house 8 is disposed at the for ward end of the body member above the keel and the piloting of the ship is controlled from this place.

In Figure 1 I have shown diagrammatically the relative position of the various elements of the invention. The construction of the elements is shown in Figure 2.

Referring to Figure 1 it will be noted that a plurality of water tanks or reservoirs 4 and 4 are employed. In the present ship I have shown four of the tanks 4* and four of the tanks 43. Those tanks bearing the numeral 4& are disposed at the forward portion of the ship at spaced distances from one another, and those bearing the numeral 4 are disposed at the rear of the mid portion of the ship at equal distances from one an other. The tanks 4* and 4 are all connected with one another by common conductor pipes 5, so that if extraneous forces are not applied above the water level of the tanks which are sealed, the water would seek a common level in all of the tanks.

My invention embodies automatic means for shifting the water from the tanks 4 to the tanks 1* and vice versa, so as to increase the weight of either the rearward or forward portion of the ship at will, and thus cause the ship to rest upon an even keel.

With reference now to Figure 2, means for automatically accomplishing this as the ship inclines, is provided in air tanks 6 disposed one alongside of each of the water tanks 4? and 4". Each of the air tanks 6 has an air compressor 7 by means of which air under pressure is kept in the tank 6.

A special air actuated valve, one of which is shown in section in Figure 2, is supplied for each of the tanks 4* and 4 This valve consists in a valve casing 8 having a substantially cylindrical longitudinal bore 9 in which a pair of spaced apart valve plungers 10 and 11 are disposed. These plungers are fitted tightly in the cylindrical portion 9 and may move longitudinally of the bore 9. The plungers 10 and 11 are connected with one another by a connecting rod 12, and are thus maintained at a predetermined distance from one another at all times.

A port 13 communicating with the in terior of the valve casing 8 at substantially its mid point is connected and adapted to communicate with the tank 4? and 4: as shown in Figure 2. The connection of the port 13 with the tanks is above the water level of the tanks. The valve casing 8 has an exhaust port 14. which communicates with the casing adjacent to one end thereof, and an air inlet port 15 which communicates with the interior of the casing adjacent to the opposite end. Thus when the pistons are in the position shown in full lines of Figure 2 in the section part of the figure, air may escape from above the level of water in the tank P through the exhaust port 14; and air under pressure from the tank 6 is held against entrance to the interior of the casing 8 by virtue of the plunger 11.

Means for moving the plungers 10 and 11 longitudinally of the cylindrical port 9 so as to shut oil or open the ports 14 and 15, is provided in valves 16 and 17 which communicate by means of a pipe 18 with the air tank 6. These valves 16 and 17 are actu ated by solenoid coils 19 and 20 respectively, each of which has a soft iron plunger 21 which is connected to the valve stem 22 of the valves 17 and 18, so that upon energization of the solenoid 20 (see Figure 2) the valve 17 will be opened and air may pass through the pipe 18 into that end of the valve casing 8 at the rear of the plunger 11 to cause the plunger to assume the position shown in the sectional portion of the figure.

When the solenoid 19 is energized, the valve 16 will open so as to cause the plungers 10 and 11 to assume the position shown in dotted lines in the casing 8 associated with the tank 1 (see Figure 2) thus permitting air from the tank 6 to pass into the casing 8, through the port 13 and force water from the tank 4. through the pipe 5 into all of those tanks having their exhaust valves set in the position shown in the sectioned part of Figure 2 and having their actuating valves 17 open.

The valve 16 communicates with that portion of the casing 8 at the rear of the plunger 10.

Means for actuating the solenoids 19 and 20 as the ship departs from an even keel is provided in a glass tube 23 which is about three feet long and which has a diameter of approximately three inches. This tube 23 has a deposit of mercury 24 therein which is at all times in contact with the terminal plate 25 placed at the mid point of the tube 23 is fixed at the center of the airship on the longitudinal axis of the keel as shown in Figure 1, so that when the ship inclines the tube will also incline and the deposit of mercury may move from one end of the tube to the other.

Electric terminals 26 and 27 are disposed at opposite ends of the tube 23 and contact with the deposit of mercury 24 selectively as the ship inclines from an even keel. In Figure 2 of the drawing, I have represented the position of the tube at the time the prow of the ship is inclined upwardly.

A current source such as a battery 28 is provided and has one terminal 29 connected with the plate 25. The opposite terminal 30 of the battery 28 is connected by means of conductor wires 31 with one terminal of each of the solenoids 19 and 20. The terminal 26 is connected by means of conductor wires 32 with one terminal of the solenoid 19 associated with the valves at the tanks 43 and with the solenoid 20 associated with the valves at the tanks at".

The terminal 27 is connected by means of a conductor 33 with one terminal of the solenoid 20 associated with the valves at the tanks P and with one terminal of the solenoid 19 associated with the valves at 4*.

Conductors 34, 35 and 36 are run to the pilot house 3 and are connected with the terminals 25, 26 and 27 of the tube 23 respectively. In the pilot house a switch blade connected with the conductor 3 1 and a pair of contact blades 38 and 39 connected with the conductors 35 and 36 respectively is provided so that the pilot may actuate the solenoids 19 and 20 precisely as if the ship were at any position ofi an even keel.

Each of the tanks 4: and 43 has a sea valve 40 which are adapted for manual actuation by a valve stem 11 for emptying the tanks in cases of emergency.

From the foregoing description of the va rious parts of the device the operation thereof may be readily understood. Let us assume that the ship 1 departs from its position on an even keel and that the prow of the ship noses upwardly so as to cause the tube 23, which is fixed rigidly to the keel, to assume the position shown in Figure 2. This will cause the deposit of mercury 24: to take the position shown in the figure and to close the circuit between the terminals 25 and 27. This will permit current from the battery 28 to pass through the conductors 31, through the solenoid 20 associated with the valves at the tanks 4 through the solenoid 19 associated with the valves at the tanks 49 and back through the conductors 33, thus keeping the circuit. Upon energization of the solenoid 20, the valves 17 will be actuated and air from the tank 6 will pass through the valve 17 (only those actuating valves associated with the valves at the tanks 4*) to cause the plungers 10 and 11 to assume the position shown in the sectioned portion of Figure 2. This opens a clear passageway between the ports 13 and the associate ports 1 1 so that air above the level of the water of the tanks may escape through the ports 14:. Energization of the solenoid 19 (which are associated with the valves at the tanks 4:) will cause the valve 17 to operate and cause the plungers 10 and 11, see dotted lines of Figure 2, to shut the exahust ports 11 associated therewith, and to open the port 15 so that air may pass from the adjacent tanks 6 to the tanks at" through the port 13, thus the air under pressure will force the Water from the tanks 4 into the tanks 4* until the change or shifting of the ballast causes the prow of the ship to move down and bring the ship to an even keel, whereupon the deposit of mercury will move out 244. AERONAUTICS of engagement with the terminal 27 and break the circuit. This breaking of the circuit will close the valves 17 and 16 which were actuated by the closing of the circuit, and compression springs 40 in each of the casings 8 which bear against the plunger 11 will cause the plunger to assume the position shown in the sectioned part of Figure 2, thus closing the port 15 in all of the valves so that the ship will lie upon its even keel until some extraneous forces cause it to incline and once again become automatically stabilized by the shifting of the ballast as described.

Means for causing the valves 16 and 17 to close upon de-energization of the magnets is provided in compression springs 41 which bear against that end of the valve stems 22 projecting beyond the valve casings and upon enlarged portions 42 at the end of the valve stems.

I claim:

1. The combination with a lighter than air ship having a longitudinally extending body member, of fluid compartments disposed at spaced intervals along said body member from the prow to the stern thereof, automatic means for simultaneously shifting fluid from certain of said compartments to other compartments when the ship departs from an even keel, whereby the ship may be caused to assume an even keel, said means including a source of compressed air and. re-

mote control valves for each compartment,

and manually operated means for actuating said automatic means at will.

2. The combination with a lighter than air ship having a longitudinally extending body member and a pilot house, of fluid compartments disposed at spaced intervals along said body member from the prow to the stern thereof, automatic means for shifting fluid in the compartments at one end of said ship to the compartments at the opposite end when the ship departs from an even keel, whereby the ship may be caused to assume an even keel, said means comprising a gravity actuated electric switch at the mid portion of the ship, a source of compressed air, a valve for admitting compressed air to said compartments above the level of the fluid therein, an electrically operated means for actuating the valves when said gravity actuated switch is operated, and manually actuated means for controlling said electrically operated means at will from the pilot house of the ship.

OTTO GEISLER. 

